Crystal Palace Continue Pursuit of Michy Batshuayi as Eagles Close in on Jordan Ayew

​Crystal Palace are stepping up their interest in Chelsea's Michy Batshuayi, while Swansea's Jordan Ayew is edging closer to completing a £2.5m move to Selhurst Park.

Ayew and Batshuayi, who are both strikers, had loan spells with the Eagles last season. Ayew scored two goals in 25 appearances, while Batshuayi scored six goals in 13 appearances following his move to the club midway through the season.

Guardian journalist Stuart James claims ​Crystal Palace will soon complete a £2.5m deal (with add-ons) with ​Swansea to sign Ayew on a permanent contract. 

Swansea are thought to be keen to sell as they look to get more ​players off their wage bill as they prepare for a second consecutive season in the ​Championship.

Jordan Ayew is set to join Crystal Palace from Swansea for about £2.5m (includes some add-ons) as soon as the Africa Cup of Nations is over. The deal isn’t signed off but it’s pretty much done. Ayew has a year left on his contract & Swansea need him (& others) off the wage bill.

— Stuart James (@StuartJamesGNM) July 6, 2019

According to The Times, Palace are also stepping up their interest in Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi. The Belgian joined the south London outfit last season following an unsuccessful first half of the season with Valencia and subsequently impressed for the Eagles, helping them to achieve a solid mid-table finish following a poor start to their campaign.

However, conflicting reports suggest Batshuayi will be given a fresh start at Chelsea following the arrival of new manager Frank Lampard. Chelsea are currently under a transfer embargo and following the departure of Álvaro Morata, only have two recognised strikers in their squad: Olivier Giroud and Batshuayi.

The Belgian striker has failed to get many first-team opportunities at Stamford Bridge since his arrival from Marseille three years ago. He's had loan spells at Borussia Dortmund, Valencia and Crystal Palace with varying degrees of success.

With the transfer embargo in place and the lack of recognised strikers, this presents the 25-year-old with a great opportunity to establish himself as Chelsea's star striker, and puts doubt over Palace's ability to snare him from Stamford Bridge. 

Source : 90min